NEW YORK (GenomeWeb) – Caribou Biosciences announced today that it has signed a deal under which it will use its CRISPR/Cas 9 gene-editing technology for the discovery and validation of new drug targets for Novartis.

Concurrent with the agreement, Novartis has also taken an undisclosed equity stake in Caribou through a Series A investment round.

Caribou will receive research funding from Novartis under the one-year term of the agreement, and it has also provided Novartis with an option to non-exclusively license its CRISPR/Cas 9 platform for research applications.